Hard Candy
by Madonna
Metascore
65

Generally favorable reviews - based on 24 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 10 out of 24
  2. Mixed: 14 out of 24
  3. Negative: 0 out of 24
  1. Blender
    80
    It's fun to hear here negotiate the contours of Top 40 pop for the first time since "Like A Prayer," without any European house music hose-head gumming up the pleasure and catharsis with mediative schmaltz. [May 2008, p.73]
  2. Entertainment Weekly
    83
    Candy finds her dropping her Kabbalah string on the dance floor and readopting an American accent to offer up an unpretentious, nonstop dance party.
  3. Observer Music Monthly
    80
    Whenever Hard Candy threatens to get boring, something always happens to recapture your interest, but the three songs in which Madonna actually seems to forge a genuine connection with her musical helpmeet leave the rest of the album in the shade.
  5. Rolling Stone
    80
    Even when she wrestles with Pharrell's abrupt stylistic changes or lets herself get absorbed in a Timberlake melody, Madonna still finds her way back on top.
  6. Slant Magazine
    70
    The entire album is a self-declaration of Madonna's stamina, but it also reflects a woman who clearly feels like she's in a furious battle against time. Her legacy is already assured, so scoring another U.S. hit is just icing on the cake but she acts like she doesn't know it.
  7. Billboard
    70
    '4 Minutes,' with Timberlake, is already a top three Billboard Hot 100 hit, and harmonious ballad 'Miles Away' might be some of her best work yet. But it feels familiar.
  8. Boston Globe
    80
    Thanks to the blunt force of her personality, Hard Candy feels perfectly concerted, without a whiff of desperation.
  9. Dot Music
    80
    We live in a Madonna world. And as long as she keeps releasing albums as vivid, relevant, distinctive and modern as this, we will for a some time yet.
  10. Village Voice
    80
    All in all, Hard Candy could be the greatest swan song to a pop career this side of Let It Be, if you wanna get all hyperbolic about it.
  11. Prefix Magazine
    80
    Madonna and some of music’s edgiest producers have again brought an underground sound to the forefront of pop music.

Awards & Rankings

5
#5 Most Discussed Album of 2008
31
#31 Most Shared Album of 2008

User Reviews

All reviews »
User Score
7.3

Generally favorable reviews- based on 562 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 398 out of 562
  2. Mixed: 89 out of 562
  3. Negative: 75 out of 562
  1. IanR
    May 25, 2008
    3
    As a huge Madonna fan, I'm disappointed. Never has she sounded more bored and more like a guest on her own songs. Enlisting the help of As a huge Madonna fan, I'm disappointed. Never has she sounded more bored and more like a guest on her own songs. Enlisting the help of Timbaland and Timberlake reeks of desperation, and this half-baked effort contains no Madonna classics and only a handful of tolerable songs. Her worst studio effort without question.… Full Review »
  2. SeanF
    Dec 5, 2008
    10
    Fantastic considering the worst song on the album was a number 1 Hit!
  3. infsai
    Mar 27, 2020
    5
    This album is too cohisive. Some songs (like "Heartbeat" and "Miles Away") could be even better if someone other than The Neptunes wouldThis album is too cohisive. Some songs (like "Heartbeat" and "Miles Away") could be even better if someone other than The Neptunes would handle those tracks production.… Full Review »
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